


loathe it or ignore it, you can't like it

by gwmclintock88



Series: Mar-vell Pokemon [5]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pokemon Fusion, Angst healing, Day 4 Prompt - Healing, F/F, Minor Character Death, Skimmons Week, but its an important death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-05
Updated: 2014-09-05
Packaged: 2018-02-16 05:23:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2257401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gwmclintock88/pseuds/gwmclintock88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everything was gone, and really she should go, but going meant it was over, and she couldn’t believe it. Wouldn’t believe it. This had to be a dream, or a nightmare, or a hallucination, or an illusion. </p>
<p>It wasn’t fair. </p>
<p>It just wasn’t fair.</p>
<p>[The one in which a character is left healing from a wound that may never close]</p>
            </blockquote>





	loathe it or ignore it, you can't like it

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, this is stretching the prompt a little bit, but it still applies. I think it does a good job and I tried something different with the narrative style. I hope it works and makes sense. 
> 
> A lot occurs in a short amount of time, but this is an turning point, for all of the characters. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this. 
> 
> Good night and good luck.

                She stared out at the lake, where the tiny remnants of the flames still burned.  She stood there, watching, gazing upon the memories, what few that mattered, as they floated away on the ashes. The idea for a pyre came from some old book on Vikings. It seemed proper, to burn away the flesh and let the spirit free. They got permission from Agent Coulson, and spent the last hour or so building the ship of twigs and leaves. They wouldn’t let anyone else help or stand over them to watch. She knew Coulson observed from a distant, standing just inside the treeline somewhere they couldn’t pick him out.

Not the hardiest ship in the fleet, but she was set for one mission.  But she had to make sure it was worthy of the load it carried.

Now, she just stared at the dying embers of the flames from the lakeshore. Everything was gone, and really she should go, but going meant it was over, and she couldn’t believe it. Wouldn’t believe it. This had to be a dream, or a nightmare, or a hallucination, or an illusion.

It wasn’t fair.

It just wasn’t fair.

**I0I**

“This is a bad idea -”

                “- we definitely shouldn’t be in here -”

                “- I can’t be a part of your bad girl shenanigans-”

                “– get into so much trouble.”

                Skye rolled her eyes as Fits and Jemma kept talking over her. Of course this was a bad idea – it was _hers._ It didn’t stop her from walking right into that cave or the two of them from following her. Not after the night they had.

                Being woken by a pokemon was to be expected, especially since none of them stood guard or anything like that. But their tent didn’t rock when a pokemon walked or flew by. No, something or dozens of somethings had to bombard it, tearing holes through the cloth and biting, poking, and scratching them. Fitz managed to get Archimedes out, and a few bolts of ember and their attackers fled.

                This lead to Skye stumbling over her feet as she slid her boots back on. By the time Jemma and Fitz dressed, Liz found the trail of their attackers and led her to the source.

                The cave looked ordinary, stuck in the side of the mountain, leading underneath to somewhere dark, forbidding, and dreary. The overgrowth hid the entrance from view and if someone wasn’t looking for, they probably would hike right past it and enjoy the rest of their trip.  Most pokemon probably ignored it, and really whatever was down there could stay there for all the right-mind Skye had left.

                The attack itself could even be an accident, pokemon trying to get food and all. But they followed every tip from every book Jemma and Fitz read. Everything from how to dispose of trash, preparing food, and even going to the bathroom (she really had more luck when she was on the streets). They followed the rules, and still something woke then in the pre-dawn hours, striking them from their dreams and destroying their tent. No, this felt wrong, felt deliberate. 

**I0I**

                The fire was gone, the raft was gone. Everything was gone.

                She stood in the dark, the cold water gently lapping at her feet. The sun finally set on the day, well past their scheduled departure. The other students probably were gone, but she stayed here. They stayed for her.

                “It’s going to be okay.”

                “How can you say that?” She regarded Fitz as stood by her side. He tried to help, but really, there wasn’t much help left she could get.

                “Because it will,” he said. He took her hand in his, and held it gently. She didn’t know how she’d feel about a hug from him right now, but this had the same feeling, the same intensity behind it. “It’s not going to go away, and will always be there. You will remember him, what he did for you. For us.” She tried to return his smile, but both of their faces broke a little at thought of being happy. “And you will earn it. Not because he gave up so much for you, but because you want to make sure his sacrifice wasn’t in vain.”

**I0I**

                The cave dipped down slip, creating a small creek that emptied into it. Skye heard the rustling of something, or many things just outside their vision. Liz walked next to her, sniffing the air at random intervals to help them out, while Pidgey rested on her shoulders, glaring at head into the darkness. Jemma gave her a flashlight before they entered, despite her reservations with the plan.  Donatello was out at her side, glaring at every shadow dancing upon the cave walls. Fitz carried Archimedes on his shoulder, leaving Marie safely in her pokeball. Both of her friends were cautious, but eventually admitted to something feeling off about this.

                They all saw the world differently. Fitz saw the mechanics behind everything, figuring out how it works and physics behind each movement and action. Jemma examined the biology of things, studying the behaviors, the bodies, why everything was connected to each other and how things lived and died, and made new life. Skye wasn’t sure how she saw the world yet, but she hoped for the best.

                If all of them thought something was off, that something was wrong with what happened this morning, she had to trust her gut. That instinct got her through so much before, and she had to believe it would again.

                “What do you think we’ll find down here?” Fitz broke the silence first. They only walked far enough into the cave so that the entrance was a pin of light behind them.

                “Nothing good, now shush,” Jemma said. The two of them exchanged glares, but kept following Skye.  She looked over her shoulder at Jemma, giving her thankful smile. Jemma’s eyes light up a bit as she returned the look.

                “You are correct.” The three of them stopped walking as the voice echoed up at them. From the darkness, a man walked out flanked by two thugs. The man’s cocked a grin, striding further forward into the light. He wore a tailored suit, and took care to avoid the muddy spots on the cave floor. Not a black hair out of place, he walked casually up to them. The thugs stayed hidden by the darkness as he walked closer to them. “Now, why do we have three little kids wandering around in a cave?”

                “We were following some zubat,” Skye said before Fitz or Jemma chime in. Neither of them could lie, well Fitz could but not well. Jemma definitely couldn’t, and everything came out in an endearing, but awkward manner.

                “Zubat? A lot of work for a swarming pokemon.” The man smiled tightly back at the shadowed thugs. “Really? What are you here for?”

                “What business is it of yours?” Skye glared at the man.  Liz copied the glare, growling at the man as he took another step toward them. “you shouldn’t even be here.”

                “No, no,” the man said. “But we are.” He stood there, scrutinizing them, deciding something. “I’m going to offer you the chance to be a part of something greater. Something better than the Academy or SHIELD could ever offer you.” The man smiled, the devil beckoned.

**I0I**

“It wasn’t your fault.” Jemma said, taking her other hand. Now she had nothing to wipe away the tears.

                “You don’t know that,” Skye said. She shook her head, telling her arms to rip away from them so she could hide away. Instead, she tucked her chin to her chest, letting her knotted hair curtain over her face. “It’s my fault. I did this. Me.”

                “Skye, no, sweetie,” Jemma wrapped her arm in a hug. It was about all of the comfort she could accept, though this was by force since neither of them would leave her alone. She just wanted….just wanted…she wanted her friend back.

                Liz leaned against her too, wrapping a ribbon around each leg. Every limb now held close and she never felt further away from anyone.

                “Why did this have to happen? Why didn’t he fly away?” Skye asked. She toss her head back so she could see. She needed to see them, to spot the lies in their eyes.

                “Because,” Fitz said. He opened his mouth to finish, but she watched the words die on his lips.

                Jemma finished it for him. “Because if he didn’t, then you wouldn’t be here with us.”

**I0I**

“Run!”

                Jemma and Fitz took off behind her, heading toward the light on the horizon. She remained where she was, standing her ground as the thugs approached her.

                “You got balls kid,” one of them said.

                “Thanks…but yuck,” she said. “Pidgey!” The bird pokemon dove forward, bombing both of the thugs. As the two of them ducked to avoid the hit, Liz tackled the one of her right. The eevee backed off, skidding in the mud as Lefty tried to take a swipe at him. Pidgey made a tight turn, swinging around a spike from the ceiling. He dove again, striking Righty in the back of the head.

                “God, I hired idiots,” the man in the suit said.  Liz struck Lefty this time, knocking him into Righty. “Use your pokemon!”

                Liz bounded back to her side. Pidgey moved to make strike as the thugs released two pokeballs a piece. Even the man of the suit released one. She stared as four zubats swarmed in and out of the darkness as a black and red dog stalked behind the thugs.

                “Oh shit,” Skye muttered. She twisted down and picked up Liz before trying to sprint up the mud and the crud and the dirt. Something slashed her side, the air cutting through her clothes. She cried out, but kept running through the pain. Heat surrounded her and she curled around Liz as she struggled to stay upright. Another slash and a burst of heat. She kept running, stumbling up the tunnel and around more spikes. The opening grew larger, but not large enough. She had no idea how far ahead of her Jemma or Fitz was, but hopefully they made it out of there.

“Pidgey!” The bird squawked behind her. She twisted her head slightly, looking over her shoulder to see her pokemon. The pidgey flapped his wings, back turned to her. “Come on!” She felt time freeze around her as the giant dog took up a position several yards down the tunnel. The zubats struck her pidgey, again, and again. She watched it tumble in the air before righting itself, only to be struck again.

“No!” She screamed. Liz fought to get out of her arms, but she only gripped the eevee tighter. “Pidgey, come on.” She waved him back to her, trying to get him to retreat with her.

“Pid-pid-pidgey!” He shrieked as he regained some height to his flight. He flapped his wings, building up a blast of wind. The gust advanced upon his attackers swiftly. The zubats disappeared into the darkness, tumbling and crashing into one another. Even the thugs fell backwards, sliding the tunnel into the dirt. The man and the dog shrugged off the wind. Pidgey glared at them, his chest puffed up with bravado as he prepared another gust.

“Enough of this.” The man in the suit stepped over Lefty to direct the dog. His face twisted in rage as he spoke: “Flamethrower!”

Skye turn in time to see a fountain of flames erupt from the dog’s mouth. It twisted and swirled in the air, and try as the Pidgey might, the flames narrowed in on him. “NO!” The flames engulfed his tiny body, swallowing in murderous red. Even as her Pidgey dropped from the air, bounced off a spike, and slammed into the ground, the flames never stopped. “Pidgey!” Eventually, the flames receded. Pidgey lay on the ground, not fluttering, not breathing.

“Now, for you,” the man in the suit pointed at her. The dog reared back its head to unleash another torrent of fire. She froze in her spot, staring at the body of her pokemon.

“Please get up,” she begged. “Please.” Liz struggled against her arms, barking loudly as the other dog gathered more power, flames curling out of its mouth. “Liz, no!” She cried out as the eevee leapt from her arms. She landed in front of Skye, growling at the man in the suit.

“What a cute pet. Take it out first.” The demon dog unleashed the flames at Liz. Skye leapt at Liz, trying to get her out of the way of the blast. She felt the world getting hotter, redder then whiter around her.  She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the attack.

But nothing happened.

She cracked open her eyes and saw white fur, not the brown fur of Liz. She looked up from the dirt, slowly taking in the white body and ribbons(?) attached to the body.  Around them, the cave glowed white hot, and even the man in the suit flinched away from them.

“No, it’s not possible,” the man in the suit said. He scanned them both, his hands curled into fists at his side. “Again!”

Liz grunted as she pushed herself up off the ground. “Time to go.” The white dog barked in agreement. She tugged on Skye’s pants leg as she stood back up before heading off ahead of her.  She ran as fast as she could, getting only a glimpse of the man in the suit walking back down the cave as she fled, the white dog at her side.

**I0I**

Skye finally took her eyes off the lake. She tried to kneel, but Fitz and Jemma kept her upright. Liz stood much taller now, and when she moved in front of Skye, she came up to her waist if not more. Standing on her hind legs, Liz wrapped her ribbons around her.

                “I…Thank you,” Skye said to her. Liz nuzzled close, licking her face once before back up to get back to down to all fours. The ribbons attached to her neck retreated slightly, only to wrap around Skye’s waist. “You saved me. I don’t know how, but you did. Again.”

                She collapsed outside of the cave, only coming around when Agents Coulson and May arrived. Jemma latched onto her immediately, but Fitz wasn’t too far behind. Ward stood off to the side, glaring both at her and the cave.  Once she was semi-awake, Skye tried to warn them about the man in the suit. This prompted concerned looks from both of the agents, but it wasn’t directed at her. Even the stoic May exhibited some apprehension, as much as the agent could.

                Jemma and Fitz didn’t say anything as the agents began to serach the cave. Each called out a pokemon, a growlithe for Coulson and a blue, star-like pokemon for May.  Ward remained with them, but called out a large toad pokemon. Jemma told her the names of the other two, but she really couldn’t remember them at this time. All she could remember was Coulson walking out of the cave, cradling the body of pidgey in his arms. She didn’t know how long they were down there, or what else they found, but they brought pidgey back to her.

                They built the little boat soon after, and she released it along the  same length of beach where she took a bath the previous day. All the other students had been sent back to the Academy, but Coulson let her stay here, to say goodbye.

                But she couldn’t. Saying goodbye would make this real, and it couldn’t be. She lost a friend before she really had a chance to bond with the pidgey. He gave her life for her, someone he knew for less than a day, but she felt that connection. It was like the one she had with Liz, only newer and raw. That link wasn’t there anymore, and she didn’t know what to do.

                She lost a friend, and it just wasn’t fair.

                “Skye?” Jemma was impossible close, wrapped around her arm. She touched their foreheads together. “Do…do you want Polly back? She is your pokemon.”

                Skye stared at her, opened her mouth to say something and then closed it. “Jem – no, I can’t. Pidgey was mine. He was mine, and now he’s gone.” The ground grew closer quickly, while the ribbons and arms tightened around her. Her knees hit the sand and she leaned back into Jemma’s arms. Fitz held onto her hand for a moment before wrapping an arm around her shoulder“He’s gone, and…and….he’s gone, Jemma. Pidgey’s gone.”

                “I know, sweetie, I know,” Jemma ran a hand through her hair.

                “He was so brave. Flying there. He was dancing in the air.” Skye glanced at Fitz and then Jemma. They had to understand. “He fought four of them, and then…and then…”

                “Even though they have their own personalities, our pokemon take after us.” Coulson stepped into view. He knelt in front of her, petting Liz as he spoke. “They follow our emotions, and the stronger the bond, the stronger the connection between us and our partners. You have one of the strongest connections I think I’ve ever seen with pokemon, Skye. You empathize with them. It’s the only way your eevee could have evolved into a sylveon.”

                “Sylveon?” Liz smiled up at her, eyes bright with happiness.

                “The intertwining pokemon – Sylveon is a rare evolution of eevee. Only available to eevee with high affection – and love – for their owners.” Coulson scrutinized her, but still there was a hint of that of something other than disapproval on his face. She looked away from him, unable to meet his eyes. She wasn’t used to that from anyone and even now was barely used to it from her friends. “Even then, they are incredibly rare. But, then again, there’s something special about you.”

                “There’s nothing special about me,” Skye said, chuckling a little through her tears. “I’m nobody.”

                “Oh, Skye, don’t say that,” Jemma cooed.

                “Yeah, Skye, you got us all out of there,” Fitz added.

                “Don’t disagree with your friends.” Coulson patted her leg before standing. “Now, let’s head back to the car. We should probably be heading back. Don’t want to keep May waiting.” He walked off several yards where what was left of their supplies where.

                “I…I’ll make you proud Pidgey,” Skye whispered. She stared out at the spot where the fire disappeared into the water, where the pyre took pidgey to his resting place, wherever that may be. Fitz gave her one last squeeze before letting go. He shared a look with Jemma behind her head, then headed over to Phil.

                “I think you already did.” Jemma tugged on her arm, pulling her up as she stood. They began to walk back to Coulson. Liz ran ahead of them and sitting down next to the agent. He absently scratched her head as they waited for Jemma and Skye. “Now, we’ve got several hours in the car, and classes tomorrow. You’re lucky I know some basic first aid.” She patted Skye’s side that had been cut open by one of the zubat’s attack. “We’ll have the nurse look you over when we get back.”

                “Yes ma’am,” Skye said, smiling a little.

                “See, a smile isn’t going to hurt,” Jemma said. “As long as you remember pidgey, then you will honor him. Okay?”

                “Okay,” Skye said. She let herself be led back. She didn’t remember much after that, except falling asleep in the car with Liz across her lap and stuck between Fitz and Jemma in the middle seat. She felt warm, she felt safe, but she still felt guilty. Her friends were right, but there was a hole there that they may never fill. And that was okay. Maybe. For now, she try and put up a brave front. It’s what Pidgey would have done.

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing. Marvel owns Agents of SHIELD; the Pokemon Company owns Pokemon; and Douglas Adams wrote the title.


End file.
